A howl of forlorn and loss called out to the blue sky. Raw emotions raged out of Ursaluna, and I couldn’t help but wonder about the bear Pokemon’s past. I watched the mournful show of expression with many thoughts running through my head.

So he feels pain when his friends are hurt. Why does he attack others? Why does he hate grass types? What happened to him in his past?

I don’t know if I would ever find out.

Ursaluna’s deep cry slightly darkened the sky, and a faint moon revealed itself above the edge of the treetops. Ursaluna used Moonlight, and beams for soft but weak moonlight touched down and graced his body—slowly healing his battered figure and open wounds.

“Stop it from recovering! Alakazam! Psychic! Blastoise! Another Hydro Pump! Scizzor! Focus Energy!”

With two heavy stomps turning in our direction, Ursaluna stopped. The bear Pokémon attacked first! The red circular mark on Ursaluna’s head drew in energy from the fading moon, drawing in small orbs of the moon’s energy.

“URSA - LUNA!” The attacking Pokemon roared, which translated to, “DIE! ALL OF YOU!”

An eerie dark-red glow emitted out and pulsated from Ursaluna. Channeling all the collected energy and meshing it with his deep anger and hatred, the mix of energy and enraged spirit redirected out in front of the bear Pokemon into a massive swirling blood-red disk. The still-growing blood-red disc of ominous energy warped the surroundings. Even the light of day seemed to avoid the glowing red darkness that began to move.

This is bad!

Chills ran down my back. I didn’t know how, but my Pikachu senses were telling me to scram. The impending attack was somehow more destructive than Hyper Beam!

Drops of sweat ran down Gary’s ghastly pale face, which lost all color. He, too, sensed and dreaded the abnormal attack.

“Cancel your attack, Blastoise! Instead, use Withdraw and Iron Defense! Sizzor! Hold up Blastoise and keep the back of his shell facing out! Brace for impact! Alakazam! Reflect! Create as many barriers as you can in front of us and reinforce with Psychic!”

Gary then turned to us and shouted, “Get behind me, all of you! Now!”

We made no hesitation and ran behind Gary with me and Squirtle gripping and peeking out from behind Gary’s slightly trembling leg.

A skinny but warm and welcoming pair of long arms wrapped around me and Squirtle, pulling us into a protective embrace. Charlie whispered into our ears, “It’s ok. We’re all in this together. I’ll protect you two.”

I looked up at the sincere face determined to shield us from harm—not knowing how to feel about being protected by a teenager likely a decade younger than me. I didn’t know if it was because I was now in the body of a young Pikachu, but Charlie seemed more like an adult, and I was more like a kid. How awkward yet nice to be cherished, but it may end up useless as neither of us could defend against the coming attack.

“Blastoise!” The evolved turtle Pokemon shouted in acknowledgment, pulling into its shell that hardened even more into a metallic gray.

Scizzor used its large and red clamp-like claws to grip the sides of Blastoise’s shell. With one grunting lift, the mix of bug and steel Pokemon swished and extended one foot back, tilting up Blastoise, and leaned its shoulder against the bottom side of the turtle Pokemon’s shell. Immediately, thick rectangular barriers of translucent purple slammed one right after the other into the ground, forming a line of multiple barriers toward Ursaluna. However, Reflect worked better on physical attacks. The move, Bloodmoon, spinning like a massive blood-red circular saw in front of the enraged Ursaluna, was a special attack!

An ominous red darkness overtook part of the sky and encroached around us. A deafening roar bellowed from Ursaluna before all went silent. A burst and flash of blood red made me squint my eyes, and then all Hell broke loose.

Towering giant trees cried out, torn from their stumps like plucked vegetables or snapped like twigs. They flew away and toppled over with cascading thuds on the earth as tree after tree was felled.

I felt it, the weight of earth-rattling destruction. I then saw it; Death closed in on us in the form of a spinning energy disc that shredded apart everything in its path.

All the Psychic reinforced barriers of Reflect shattered one after the other. Shards of translucent purple blasted away or consumed by the massive blood-red disc of Death—shrieking through the air as it came for our blood and screams.

“Scizzzzz-ooorr!” The bug and steel Pokemon groaned with a shout while its legs slid back, leaving a deep trail of dirt in the ground as it used all its might to hold up Blastoise’s shell.

However, Blastoise bellowed out in agonizing pain.

“BLASTOISE!”

The red disk cut through the hardened metal-like shell, splattering out blood onto the ground as it spun and cut into the massive withdrawn turtle Pokemon.

Gary gritted his teeth. He needed to do something quick or have turtle sashimi. With quick thinking, he bellowed out commands. “Sizzor! A heavy push only on one side of Blastoise’s shell! Dislodge the disc! Alakazam! Psychic! Maximum power! Redirect that damn spinning disc attack away from us!”

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“Sizzor!” The bug and steel Pokemon shouted back, slamming both of its claws on one side of Blastoise’s shell. The turtle Pokemon grunted but soon stopped as his shell spun around, dislodging the disc still cutting deeper into its back. The sudden movement flipped the disc spinning like a coin, hurling it angled slightly away but still in our direction.

It was too large! The madly spinning disc now looked like a rolling ball that would smash right into us!

“Alakazam!” The psychic Pokemon shouted, grunting as it stabbed its spoons at the direction of the catapulting flipping disc. As if pushing something extremely heavy and unmovable, Alakazam’s spoons halted in the air—trembling as they tried to redirect the deadly attack away from us. But the blood disc still came at us!

“KAZAM!” Alakazam bellowed, his spoons breaking through something invisible—pushing off the hurling disc just enough for us to escape Death.

The unrelenting parried attack rushed towards us but slightly angled off the path, smashing through the trees lining the road—cutting and slicing everything in its way. Nothing stopped it as it continued its destruction deep into the Viridian Forest. Who knows how many unknowing Pokemon died.

“Damn it!” Gary swore, and I looked back from the trail of destruction leading into the forest from Bloodmoon Ursaluna’s attack.

I peered up at Gary, worried and confused from his distraught tone of voice. But then, I realized why Gary swore.

“That murdering bear ran away!” Gary exclaimed with horror.

Gary was right. I looked at the spot where Ursaluna should have stood. Nothing. Only dirt and toppled trees remained in sight. Gary hurried and ran over to check, and we followed suit. A trail of heavy footprints showed the bear Pokemon scurrying off. I looked at the footprints that ran back into the forest with a complicated look.

Usraluna was more calm and level-minded than I thought. He’s smart. Too smart. And too dangerous.

“Damn it! I will chase after him! Return, Blastoise. I'm sorry you got hurt, my friend.” Gary said while glancing down with a sorrowful look at Blastoise’s Pokeball.

He walked over, handing it to his psychic Pokemon, commanding, “Alakazam, Teleport and take Blastoise to the Pokemon Center right away! When finished, Teleport back here to take the kids. Sizzor, you’re with me! Kid, in the meantime, capture all the other Pokemon and give them to me later for questioning! Afterwards, the rest of you will immediately return back to town with Alakazam!”

Before Charlie could add his bit of words, Gary and Scizzor dashed off, hurriedly following the still-fresh tracks before they went cold. Alakazam teleported and vanished, leaving Charlie, me, and Squirtle to finish the cleanup.

Charlie sighed, relieved yet stressed, collapsing onto his knees. He looked up to the sky and took a deep breath before commanding us, “Let’s do what Gary said first. We’ll go find Pidgeotto afterward.

My trainer looked over at the closest injured enemy Pokémon with concern and apprehension. He stood up, lifting his hand, wanting to help but stopped. Even I did not know if Ariados faked being knocked out. Strange, how Charlie showed compassion to his attackers, though his Pokemon did suffer the least from this battle.

Ariados lay sprawled out on its abdomen, unmoving and slightly leaning on its side, with some of its limbs missing. A red and green liquid oozed from the open wounds, trying to seal the damage. Charlie surprisingly rolled a Pokeball on the floor like a bowling ball. He did not throw it from what I assume to be because he worried the hurling ball would further damage the injured enemy Pokemon. The Pokeball tapped the Ariados’s thorax before sucking the spider Pokemon inside with a flash of red light.

Charlie went over and grabbed the Pokeball that stopped wiggling. However, Charlie also collected the broken-off limbs, stuffing them inside his bag! I gave him a weird look, wondering if he was going to eat them later. He saw my grossed-out look and complained, “It’s not what you’re thinking! Maybe we can still have Nurse Joy and Chansey reattach them!”

“Oh…” I replied back in human tongue, better understanding my trainer’s motives. “Sure, whatever you say, boss,” I added with a dubious tone as I walked off.

“It’s true! Hey! Sax! I’m not lying!” Charlie shouted as he and Squirtle followed me to the fainted others.

“I’m telling the truth, Sax!” My trainer said, trying to explain himself as I nodded my head. I simply pointed at the two knocked out Pokémon, and Charlie gave up on convincing me.

He did the same with Pinsir and Duskull, rolling the Pokeballs instead of throwing the ball at them. I was glad my trainer was kind. Maybe too kind? I didn’t know yet.

Before the last Pokeball with Duskull inside stopped twitching back and forth, Alakazam flashed in front of us—causing me to stumble backward onto my bum as I shouted in alarm. “Ahhh!!!”

Realizing who it was, I pushed up from the ground and jumped up into standing. I jabbed my finger angrily—poking it in the air at Gary’s damn Alakazam, who teleported and tried to give us all a heart attack.

“What the hell, man! A little warning would be nice!” I said, messing up again and awkwardly adding, “Pika!”

Alakazam stared deep into my eyes. I started to sweat. And then suddenly, the unrushed voice of an old man sounded in my head. The psychic Pokémon spoke telepathically with a hoarse and throaty voice.

“How peculiar. What say you, who lurks and hides inside this mere rodent’s body? Such ease of tongue makes this old one feel you to be alike my master. Yet, such careless mistakes seem to show you to be young and foolish.”

My eyes narrowed at the pretty spot-on but also wrong induction from the psychic Pokémon.

“Mere rodent? Excuse you! I’m a Pikachu!” I replied with a sassy attitude. I was slightly offended. Okay, maybe more than slightly. Charlie tilted his head, but I paid little attention to my confused trainer and Squirtle.

“My point is proven, no? Speaking carelessly in your human words yet again. Controlling your temper shall do you well. Could your problem come from the young body you now inhabit? Typically, only the follies of youth are to blame for such mistakes.”

My face twitched.

“Youth? Am I that bad? Jeez. You know, it’s not that terrible. It could be, ya know? Like a certain psychopathic murder? What if I was Ursaring? I mean, I guess he's Ursaluna now. But you know what I mean!”

“A fair point. There are worse out there, odd one. I only warn you of caution.”

“Fine. I’m not completely unreasonable, old one. In return, a warning next time if you should decide to pop out of nowhere. No surprises.”

“You seem the type to like surprises, no? As my master commanded, we must return to the human’s town.”

There was no arguing with this old man. No, old Pokémon, I should say. The old folk loved twisting and playing with words. Well, not today, old man! I crossed my arms.

“Well, surprise! We ain’t leaving, geezer. Not until we get my friend, Pidgeotto.”

The corner of Alakazam’s narrow stout lifted into a smirk—revealing his pearly whites, which reminded me of large horse teeth. His eyes looked down on me while saying, “My master ordered your return. And return all of you shall. Escape is futile. None will escape my power.”

I huffed back in my mind, “Hmpf. Then you’re going to keep doing it, old man! We’re just going to keep coming right back! Are you going to babysit us all day? Might as well come with us right now and grab our friend before sending us back, right?”

The psychic Pokemon finally broke his calm and showed other emotions, particularly annoyance as wrinkles formed on his frowning face. “Pesky rodent. My master never ordered me to return your bunch more than once.”

Got him; my turn to smirk.

“You think Gary is going to let you off if something happens to us?” I waved my finger back and forth—cheekily shaking my head and taunting the criticizing Pokemon. “Rather careless of you, Mr. Alakazam. I expected more from an old wise Pokemon.”

Alakazam fully expressed his emotions now, showing a terrifying scowl. Lines crinkled his angry face. His narrow eyes stretched wide with an intense fuming stare. “You test my patience, strange being within a rodent. Lucky for you, I do not test the patience of my master.”

The angry Pokemon’s telepathic voice lowered an octave, ordering me with a chilling tone.

“Go. Run to your little friend. However, do not dare whine later should I return you all to the Pokemon center at any notice of danger. You must have great luck. For I have shown you mercy instead of wringing your infuriating mouth.”

LEVEL UP!